El Sufrimiento (The Suffering)
by Gregory Dwayne Co
Summary: During the Spanish colonization in the Philippines, the gang have shared their memories of their darkest past from their childhood to their teenage years. They realized they looked back and remembered that they should look foward instead of backward. (Rated T for safety) (Update: This story is now discontinued.)


**El Sufrimiento**

**Part 1**

_by Gregory Dwayne Co_

The time during the Spanish colony in the Philippines as a local citizen was very struggling and rigorous. From collecting taxes for the Spanish government, Catholic priests sexually abuse Indio ladies, and death penalties for different crimes—even small ones, it was a hardship for the Filipinos. Not even the two local couples faces the hardships during the tribulations. Miguel "Mickey" Teodoro Ratón (Mickey Mouse) and Minerva "Minnie" Vega Rata (Minnie Mouse) now happily married since 1889. Now living in a nice, regular, white _Bahay na bato_, together with Mickey's older half brother Oswald Afortunado Conejo (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit) and his wife and Minnie's sister-in-law, Ortensia Maya de la Gata (Ortensia the Cat) staying. They all have very good relationships with each other, even during hardship of times. Sometimes they might suffer from those ballistic army of Spaniards and the government. They do love hanging out with each other benevolently, and talk about good old-time memories.

Mickey and Oswald were currently working together at La Solidaridad selling newspapers at the streets of Intramuros, and both did a really good job. They do read the articles first before selling them outside, and tell each other jokes during break times. During weekends, they sometime spend time together with their wives, worked at a local café as servers, or hang out with their friends.

It was already evening, the rodent brothers were now at bed in their underwear, getting ready for another day at work. As Oswald got his covers up, he saw Mickey just sitting at the left side of the bed thinking about something.

_"Mick, what's wrong?" _Mickey turned to Oswald to talk.

_"Oh, nothing," _Mickey said, in a droopy mood, _"I'm just…*sigh*…just thinking about…memories."_

_"Bad memories?" _He said, feeling worried about Mickey.

_"Yeah, mostly," _He replied in a melancholic tone, but with a small, lonely grin, _"There are lot of good times we have since we…got separated from birth…from our parents."_

They both sighed sadly, and then there was minute-long silence, until Oswald shifted beside him and wrapped his arm around his little brother.

_"You know what happened to your mother, right?"_

_"Well Ozzie, to tell ya…never taught of what happened to my mom." _He then faced his older brother's face, touching his nose to his.

_"I'll tell ya." _He then started explaining what happened to their mother. _"My mom and I suffered a lot. That time after I went home from college. It was worse."_

***START FLASHBACK***

_When he was 3, his dad separated his mother from hatred, holding baby Mickey in his hands. Only with his mother, she tried her best to take care of him to have better education and discipline. She taught him to speak and read Tagalog, Spanish, and Latin. She even told him stories that reflects reality. She even taught him about the Holy Bible, because they're Catholic, they pray together or alone in a small oratory__, just beside their living room, and go to church together every Sunday morning. His childhood and teenage years were golden, he is very caring and loyal for his mother. He even joined as one of the altar boys for 3 years to be close with God._

_Till the year 1877, Oswald went back home from Universidad de San Jose via kalesa. He always thinks about his loving mother. He is trying his best to get better education for himself and a better living his mother. He just finally arrived at his house and went inside. He until heard her mother's cry and scream with his 2 long ears. His heart started pounding with anxiety as he heard her shrieks getting louder and louder. _

"Mamá?" _He yelled._ "Mamá?!"

_He ran upstairs and heard again the mother's cry getting louder, it means he's getting close. He was already in the small corridor with 4 doors, and he heard it at the 2nd door to the right, which is actually his bedroom. He dashed to the door and he opened the door and he saw his bedroom was a mess, and his mother on his bed. As he go close to mother, he saw her got a lot of scars on her arms, legs, and torso. He saw her in horror and started to whimper._

"¡Má!" _He cried. _"What happened to you!? Who did this to you!?" _She then faced her son, who was already filled with fear._

"El hijo," _She said, in a stilly voice, _"A burglar just breaks inside and he started whipping me off to death." _Oswald's tears started to form on his eyes._

"That's not good. Look at you, those scars art getting worst. You better go to the hospital."

_Good thing there a hospital nearby, he'll take his weak mother there fast. He quickly holds her body and loudly__ called a kalesa to take them there fast. When they arrive, he told the doctors to heal her, and they're doing their best to heal her. Oswald felt super worried about his mother, he don't know if she's going to die. There could be more to that crime of that burglar did to his mother that she'll pass away. He was still waiting, whistling to The Gospel, until a female nurse came out of the door, to tell him the results. _

"Señor," _The nurse called__, in a sad, soft tone._

"How is my mom?"

"Well, not okay. We do examine her scars, and we see that it's filled with some poison."

"Say what!?"

"That poison we just examine is very toxic, and that could kill her in a few minutes."

_He was in shock already, and just remembered that his mother said that a burglar who broke their house and whipping her to death. The whip could be coated with poison to kill her. He went inside the room quickly too see his mother laying on the bed. _

"Do you think you're gonna save her?" _Oswald asked the nurse._

"We're trying. Just wait outside, we'll remind you."

_Oswald went outside, closed the door and started roaming around in circles. It's been 2 hours, and still no word from a nurse. Until then, the nurse came out with a doctor beside her._

"Any luck?" _He asked._

_The doctor and nurse stayed silent for while, and the nurse finally said a word._

"No, it's to late,"_The nurse said sadly, _"We're afraid that…we have to consider her **dead**."

_The word 'dead' hit Oswald's heart and started to cry._

"No…no…NNNOOOOOOOOOO!"

_Three days later, Oswald's at the funeral home at Escolta alone__, with his deceased mother in a nice casket. 3 priests were standing in front of it. One holding the Bible and a wooden cross, the other sprinkling__ a bottle of Holy Water at the coffin, and the other one chanting softly. He was sitting at the second row of a pew whimpering, with his head bowed down, and his hands clenched each other, praying for his mother to be in paradise. It was a bad day for him. A priest then sat beside him and patted his hand on his shoulder for comfort._

"She's a good mom, isn't she?" _The priest asked a sad rabbit._

"Sí, she loves me a lot. My father separated her with me because of the abuse of he did to her."

"What did your dad do to her?" _He asked him silently._

"My mom said that after my little brother were borned, my dad started to become a maniac, and started spanking her like 3-5 times; I don't know. She was very defenseless."

"Does he repent?"

"Well, I don't know. After my dad separated her, with my little brother on his side, my mom felt very distressed, and she's having a hard time raising me. So I do my best to take care for her, and better education."

"You're a good man, and you know better than anyone."

"Gracias," _Oswald smiled a little._

_It was already 4 o'clock noon, and he's already at the cemetery with the priests saying their last prayers to Oswald's mother. He was in his white traditional barong tagalog, holding a bouquet of flowers, getting ready to say goodbye to his mom. _

"Adiós, mamá," _He said, as he put a bouquet on her bed, _"Descansa en paz."

_The assistants now carried the body inside the furnace and turned it on._

***ENDING FLASHBACK***

_"My gosh," _Mickey said, _"that burglar could've been arrested ."_

_"He already did," _Oswald replied, _"he's in prison for like…I don't know, 15 years?"_

_"I think it depends on the crimes he did."_

_"Yeah," _Oswald then lowered his head, facing the wooden floor, and sighed sadly _"our mom is now in the wonderful place already, enjoying God's creation. I hope she'll come again to see me."_

Mickey's arm wrapped his neck gently and patted his shoulder.

_"I bet she will. Always, because she loves you."_

_"Thanks, Mickey," _Oswald sighed. Then he just remembered about their dad who abused her mother before, _"What about you? You're with dad before, right?"_

_"Yeah,…but not like you." _Oswald raised an eyebrow.

_"What do you mean?"_

_"Unlike our mother, she caring for you, but with my dad…was very dark as the purge."_

_"So you're been abused by him, right?"_

_"Not just that, he's also a drunkard, gambler, and a chain smoker. He's like that after he 'broke up' with our mom," _Mickey grinned a bit, _"but I was lucky that my godfather helped me, and because of this, I was able to have good education and good friends. But poor papá, he already died from lung cancer and heart attack. I was thankful for my godfather for his support."_

***START FLASHBACK***

_3 years since Mickey's dad separated his mother, who was already adopting Oswald, he lived a living hell with his dad. He would just have a bottle of beer to any other alcoholic drinks he can find, and telling the young Mickey to beg for money on the streets. He was only 5 years old during that time, he will always exclaimed "alms for the poor" multiple times on the sidewalk, holding a tin cup to put coins in it. Mickey really loves his dad, but he __hates him being a drunkard, and not being such a responsible one._

"¡Miguel!" _His dad angrily yelled at him, holding a tin cup with just a silver coin, _"What's the meaning of this!? I told you to go out and beg, and you just got one peso coin!"

_Then he got out a whip, ready to hit Mickey. The young rodent moved back as his dad moved closer to the wall behind him. He leaned back being frightened, and his dad started whipping him very hard. He begun sobbing very loud from the pain from the whip. One whip at the time, he almost passed away. _

_It was almost nighttime, his dad told him to do the same thing again, but this time, Mickey didn't do it. He visited his godfather's house to seek help from abuse. He knocked the door 3 times, and a few seconds later, his godfather opened the door. The godfather saw the young Mickey getting scars from his body, with smudgy blood stains on his ripped white shirt. He was in shock and worry to see himself getting injured._

"¡El hijo!" _His father exclaimed, _"what happened to you?"

_Mickey then started whimper._

"Padrino, papá whipped me for not getting enough money for him. He told me to go out to do the same thing, but instead, I have to be with you to escape from him. I want you to help me please!"

"That's bad, my brother never does that."

"Padrino, I still love him, I can't let him do that to me again!" _Mickey cried._

_The godfather knelt down, and hugged him. _"Don't worry, I know you still love him, I also love you as well. Come in!"

_He let him get inside his house to get help and support. Later, the wife of the godfather was at her bedroom with Mickey, putting herbal medicine and bandage on the scars. _

"Gracias, madrina. I felt better now."

"De nada," _She kissed his forehead, "now go get some rest, okay?"_

"Okay madrina,"_ Then he rested his head on the pillow, and closed his eyes, for he is safe from his drunk father._

_Meanwhile downstairs, both godparents are now at the living room. The godmother was now sewing new clothes for him, since his old ones were ripped and bloody, and godfather was reading a novel he just bought last week. I hope the father will not mind for Mickey._

_Years later, Mickey became successful with the help and support from his 'padrino'. From kindergarten, to elementary, to high school, and college, he became a scholar at the end. He's also became an altar boy for 4 years, to be close with God and the community. One day, a word from a relative of his besotted father was released. Mickey heard a knock on the door while he's sweeping the floor. He went forward, and opened it and he saw his dad's relative._

"Yes, can I help ya?"

"Hola," _he said, _" I want to tell you that there some bad news happening to your dad."

"What is it then? What happened to my father, he's a drunkard." _He told him, and starts to report._

"Yes he is, due to smoking cigarettes and too much alcoholic beverages, he died by cancer and brain damage. The doctors tries to save him, but failed."

_After hearing this, his heart breaks just a smidgen._

"I'm afraid," _he continued, _"because he didn't turn away from his sins, he's already in purgatory."

_A three-day long silence started after the death of his father was notified._

***END FLASHBACK***

_"So, did you visit his graveyard?" _Oswald asked him, feeling bad for Mickey having that flashback.

_"Actually Oswald, he doesn't have his own gravesite, because the priests said that he's a sinner and so they cremated him and threw a clay pot with his ashes at the river." _Mickey replied, with a sigh after that.

_"Oh right, a sinner who doesn't repent his sins to the priest before s/he dies, then his/her grave will not be placed. I completely forgot about that." _He sighed, and asked him one more time. _"Did you miss him, even he's drunk?"_

_"Of course," _Mickey exclaimed a little, _"if he would've changed into a loving and caring father, then I wouldn't have a better life."_

_"Don't worry about that Mick," _Oswald whispered, patting him on the shoulder gently, _"like they all said, it's all in the past, we just look forward to the future ahead." _Mickey sighed, and turned his frown face into a little smile.

_"You're right, at least we passed the narrow road."_

_"That true buddy," _Oswald said happily, _"very true."_

_"C'mon Ozzie, lets go to sleep, we got work to do tomorrow morning."_

_"You're right! Goodnight Mick."_

_"Goodnight to you too Ozzie."_

Mickey turned off the lantern beside him and they all got their covers up and slept together in the same bed. It was a peaceful night, with a nice, cool breeze and crickets chirping at the rice fields and the moon shines bright at the two sleeping rodents.

Morning arises from the east, flowers started blooming from the morning rays, the bees, butterflies and birds flying joyfully at the deep blue sky. It was another day. The brothers were getting ready for another day for work. They started grooming themselves in their regular, old uniform, and their signature hat they always wear for work.

_"Here," _Mickey said, adjusting his brother's collar, _"this needs to be adjust just……like that."_

_"Thanks bro," _he smiled, _"lets go down, shall we."_

_"Alright then."_

They went downstairs too see their wives, wearing their lovely long cotton white dress, greeting them from the kitchen.

_Buenos días," _the girls greeted with a beautiful smile.

_"Buenos días," _they greeted back. They came down and embraced them with felicity.

_"How're you girls doing," _Oswald asked the girls.

_"We're okay," _Minnie replied, _"and you?"_

_"We're fine as well," _Mickey said, _"we're just…umm…you know, a small chat before bedtime."_

_"Yeah……like that" _Oswald chuckled.

_"That's okay boys,"_ Ortensia smiled, _"c'mon now, you don't want to be late for your job."_

_"Thanks ladies," _the boys exclaimed, _"we'll see ya later," _Oswald told them.

_"Adiós," _they exclaimed, _"Oh yeah, forgot to tell ya that there's lunch on the table," _Ortensia added.

_"Don't worry, we'll bring it with us." _Mickey shouted.

_"¡Gracías!" _

Mickey and Oswald left the nest and took a ride on a kalesa to work.


End file.
